Wednesday, 30th November 2022

Hon. Members, I have three Communications; one long and two short ones. The Members entering into the Chamber can take the nearest available free seat.

memorandum in the manner prescribed in the schedule, for tabling in the House. Upon receipt of the Statutory Instrument and the memorandum, the Clerk shall enter the instrument into the register required to be maintained under the Act.

Hon. Chepkonga noted that even as early as 2014, the then Speaker took notice of the practice adopted by regulation making bodies of neglecting or failing to transmit regulations to the House.

Hon. Members, in the ensuing debate, several Members, including the Leader of Majority Party, Hon. Kimani Ichung’wah; the Deputy Minority Leader, Hon. Robert Mbuye; the Minority Whip, Hon. Junet Mohamed; Hon. Martha Wangari and Hon. William Kamket weighed in on the matter.

Hon. Members joined issue with Hon. Chepkonga noting a sustained practice of regulation making bodies bypassing Parliament while formulating regulations that they expect to have the force of law. Further, a query was raised on whether the definition of what constitutes a Statutory Instrument in both the Statutory Instruments Act, 2013 and the Standing Orders is ambiguous, and whether that attributes to the failure by the regulation making bodies to comply.

From the request for direction made by Hon. Chepkonga and the contributions by the Members on the matter at hand, I have isolated the following two issues for response:

of the Committee on Delegated Legislation with regard to Statutory

vests Parliament with unique legislative mandate to the exclusion of any other person or body other than Parliament, which may only issue an instrument having the force of law under the authority conferred by the Constitution or by legislation.

Article 94 (6) of the Constitution further elucidates the procedure to be followed with regard to any delegation of law making by Parliament. It provides that an Act of Parliament or legislation of a county that confers on any State Organ, State Officer or person, the authority to make provision having the force of law in Kenya as contemplated in Clause 5 shall expressly, specify the purpose and objectives for which that authority is conferred, the limits of the authority, nature and scope of the law that may be made, the principles and standards applicable to the law made under the Authority.

In its wisdom, Parliament passed the Statutory Instruments Act in 2013 to provide for the making, scrutiny, publication and operation of Statutory Instruments. The Act contains provisions which guide regulation making bodies on the need for wide stakeholder consultation and fidelity to the Constitution and laws passed by Parliament in making subsidiary legislation. In furtherance of the requirements of the Constitution, the Act subjects every Statutory Instrument to scrutiny by Parliament. It further outlines 13 criteria against which Parliament, through its relevant Committee, must assess every instrument. This ranges from compliance with the Constitution and the written law, defective drafting and delay in tabling, among other issues that the Committee may consider to examine.

Hon. Members, with regard to the definition, the Act defines a Statutory Instrument as “any rule, order, regulation, direction, form, tariff of costs or fees, letters of patent, commission, warrant, proclamation, by-law, resolution, guideline or other statutory instrument issued, made or established in the execution of a power conferred by or under an Act of Parliament under which that Statutory Instrument or subsidiary legislation is expressly authorised to be issued.” The

definition is unequivocal. Any instrument said to be made pursuant to a power granted to an Act of Parliament must be brought to Parliament for scrutiny.

With regard to the second issue, I agree with the concern of Members on the neglect or failure by regulation making bodies to transmit statutory instruments to the House for scrutiny. Having guided that any instruments said to be made pursuant to a power granted by Parliament must be tabled before the House, what should obtain if a regulation making body fails to table such an instrument? As noted by the Deputy Leader of the Minority Party, Hon. Robert Mbui, Section 11 of the Statutory Instruments Act 2013 automatically nullifies statutory instruments not laid before Parliament for scrutiny.

Hon. Members, though the provisions may be clear to us as a House, it has to be put into context. Both the Statutory Instruments Act 2013 and the Standing Orders only contemplates the activation of the mandate of the Committee on Delegated Legislation upon tabling of the statutory instrument before the House. Conversely, regulation making bodies and other functionaries of the Executive published various instruments they require the public to obey without providing any evidence that they have tabled in Parliament such instruments for scrutiny.

It is, therefore, clear that the gap between the exercise of the delegated law-making authority and the scrutiny of subsidiary legislation has led to the general public blindly abiding by Statutory Instruments merely on the basis that they have been published. Further, the public is not able to access information on when and where such Statutory Instruments have had the force of law. Currently, a public-spirited citizen is the one required to ascertain whether a particular instrument that impacts on his or her rights was indeed tabled before Parliament. If the citizens discover that the instrument was not laid before Parliament and has therefore not been scrutinised, he or she is the one to seek judicial review and quashing of such an instrument. To my mind, Parliament ought not to allow such a state of affairs to exist unchecked.

Hon. Members, allow me to give you an overview of the practice and procedure obtaining in the United Kingdom (UK), from where we have borrowed quite heavily on the law, practice and procedure relating to Statutory Instruments. In the UK, ministers use delegated legislation to make changes to the law under powers given to them in an Act of Parliament. Statutory Instruments are the most common types of delegated legislation. About 3,500 Statutory Instruments become law each year. It is worth noting that in the UK, the Act that contains the power to make delegated legislation usually specifies what needs to happen to the Statutory Instruments for it to become law. Many Statutory Instruments are not subject to any parliamentary procedure and a minister can simply sign them into law. In the same jurisdiction, where parliamentary procedure applies, Statutory Instruments must be formally presented to Parliament. It then usually takes one of the following three main routes:

Hon. Members, there are specialised categories of Statutory Instruments that are used for particular purposes that are or can be considered under the super affirmative procedure. These Statutory Instruments usually amend or repeal Acts of Parliament. Under the super affirmative procedure, a minister presents a proposal for a Statutory Instrument and an explanatory statement. Committees in the House of Commons and in the House of Lords consider the proposal and can make recommendations. Then the minister can formally present or lay a draft of the Statutory Instrument under the affirmative procedure. When Statutory Instruments are formally presented to Parliament, they are said to be laid and when a minister has signed them into law, they are said to be made.

Most statutory instruments are presented to the House of Commons and the House of Lords. Some mainly involved in finance are only presented to the House of Commons. Statutory Instruments cannot be amended. Each House can simply approve or reject the instrument. Worth noting too is that the UK has a Statutory Instrument Service that enables the public and all concerned to follow the progress of all Statutory Instruments formally presented to Parliament and to see what stages are coming up next. It provides the deadlines for annulling a negative instrument and also shows a link to all debates. Committee reports and decisions in both Houses are linked to the text of the Statutory Instrument and information on whether the Statutory Instrument will be debated in the committee of delegated legislation or in the chamber.

Hon. Members, while we borrowed a lot from the UK law, practice and procedure, our constitutional architecture is different. Our law practice and procedures have been evolving. Indeed, our Committee on Delegated Legislation is a creation of both the Statutory Instruments Act 2013 and Standing Order 210. As a Committee of the House, it is imbued with full powers and privileges outlined under Standing Order 191 (1), which provides as follows:

“191 (1) Committees shall enjoy and exercise all the powers and privileges bestowed on Parliament by the Constitution and statute including the powers to –

evidence or providing information;

affirmation or otherwise;

public; and,

Hon. Members, the foregoing powers allow the Committee to call for scrutiny of any instruments said to be made in exercise of powers delegated under an Act of Parliament. Additionally, the Committee is at liberty, pursuant to its oversight mandate, to notify the Executive and all regulation making bodies to ensure that any instruments said to be made in exercise of authority delegated under an Act of Parliament is tabled before Parliament strictly within the prescribed timelines. In the unlikely events that the regulation making bodies persist in their failure to table instruments that ought to be tabled in Parliament, the Committee is at liberty to report that fact to the House.

In order to insulate the public from blind obedience of instruments that are seemingly immunised from parliamentary scrutiny, the House may resolve to direct the publication of a notice highlighting the non-compliant statutory instruments and their fate in light of Section 11 of the Statutory Instruments Act 2013.

Hon. Members, in summary, therefore, I guide as follows:

125 of the Constitution and Standing Order 191 (1) of the National

Hon. Members, the Committee may, indeed, wish to look at the Act and tighten the process of presenting those instruments to this House, including but not limited to giving a notice in the Kenya Gazette, which the House can regularly check and alert the body making instruments that until and unless such instruments are tabled in the House, they have no force of law.

I thank you.

Hon. Members, as you are all aware, the 13th Parliament was inaugurated on 8th September 2022, after which an induction workshop of all Members was undertaken here in Nairobi. In keeping with the tradition within the Commonwealth, the National Assembly, in conjunction with the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA), has organised a four-day post-election seminar from 30th January 2023 to 3rd February 2023.

Hon. Members, the seminar is organised in partnership with the CPA and is aimed at building capacity of Members of the 13th Parliament in all aspects of good parliamentary practices as well as promoting our national values and ideals of parliamentary democracy.

We shall also reach out to our partners from the United States of America’s National Democratic Institute and the International Republican Institute (IRI) with a view to benefiting from best practices in the US Congress, particularly on matters touching on bicameralism and multi- party democracy.

Hon. Members, most importantly, the sessions will provide Members with a window to gain a better understanding of parliamentary systems and processes in established jurisdictions such as the UK, the US among others while also affording opportunity to hear and interact with Speakers from some of our sister Parliaments within the East African Community (EAC) and the larger African continent.

Additionally, Hon. Members, the seminar will also provide a platform for Members to discuss and engage with players from other arms of Government and experts in the areas of democratic governance.

I, therefore, take this opportunity to invite all Members to this very important event and request all of us to make time and attend. The Clerk will share specific details regarding the seminar in due course, including but not limited to the venue out of Nairobi and all other logistics.

The House is accordingly informed.

Those two Members, take your seats.

Hon. Members, the Communication that follows must be music to the Deputy Speaker’s ears.

Hon. Members, the 16 days of activism against Gender Based Violence (GBV) is an annual campaign that begins on 25th November every year on the International Day for the elimination of violence against women and girls and runs through the International Human Rights Day commemorated on 10th December each year.

Hon. Members, this year’s theme, “Unite activism to end violence against women and girls” will be commemorated globally and in Kenya. The focus will be to mobilise member states, civil society and women’s rights organisations, organisations working with men and boys, the United Nations system, the action coalition on gender-based violence, human rights defenders, private sector and individuals to stand in solidarity and call for a world free from violence against women and girls.

The Government of Kenya, a key champion of gender equality, is co-leading the gender- based violence action coalition under the general equality platform, committing to 12 actions to eradicate all forms of GBV and Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) by 2026. These commitments will be realised through intensified campaigns and working together to remove systemic barriers that allow GBV to thrive.

Hon. Members, it is against this background that UN-WOMEN, in partnership with my office and the Kenya Women Parliamentary Association (KEWOPA), have organised a personal commitment event geared towards securing personal commitment of Members of Parliament and key duty bearers on the action to end GBV in Kenya. This very important event will take place at the Members’ new dining room, main Parliament on Thursday, 1st December 2022 between 7.00

Hon. Members, may we also take cognisance of the fact that Thursday, 1st December 2022 is the World Aids Day. It is noteworthy that the spread of HIV-AIDS is a major concern as its spread is accelerated by gender-based violence. According to UN-AIDS, women who have experienced GBV are up to three times more likely to be infected with HIV than those who have not. Let us all prioritise creating awareness. Let us all protect our women and girls, and let us all live together in peace and harmony.

Thank you. I am sorry Members, that was a bit long. I indicated that anybody who wants to make comments on the Statutory Instruments Communication, you are free to do so. I do not see Hon. Chepkonga, who triggered the issue. I will start with Hon. Wamuchomba, the Member for Githunguri.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. Bear with me because my voice is a bit unbalanced. However, I am very excited. I have been waiting for the ruling concerning these pieces of legislation that were passed in the previous Parliament. As you have rightly put it, there were procedures that were not properly followed. Therefore, I want to inform you that some of those pieces of legislation that were passed have adversely affected the way we do things, especially in some sectors.

We have a Coffee Caucus in this Parliament. I believe that one of the issues that made Members of Parliament to come together to discuss coffee issues is a certain legislation that was passed during the 12th Parliament that adversely affected the way we trade and manage coffee. We are very excited with your ruling. We look forward to see better ways of handling issues, more so correction of mistakes that were made as errors of omission or commission, so that we give farmers the rightful share of the returns of their crop.

Hon. Speaker, I am talking about the coffee issue because it is in the public domain. Some regulations were passed here without following the correct procedures. Hence farmers, traders, millers and growers have been complaining. I hope from today onwards, we will provide a solution.

I thank you for giving me the opportunity to comment.

Thank you, Hon. Wamuchomba. Those who want to comment, go to interventions.

That is Hon. Sunkuli. Is that Hon. Oundo?

Hon. Speaker, as a Member of the Select Committee on Delegated Legislation, I want to thank you very much for that very well-reasoned ruling. We

have noted this in the Committee. Indeed, there are some people and organisations that take advantage of delegated powers to make far-reaching legislations without reverting to Parliament. There is a big number but I do not have the figures. There are regulations that have expired but they continue to be implemented.

Your Communication today stamps the authority of Parliament as the sole law-making organisation or authority in Kenya. All the laws that have been made outside the authority of Parliament should be recalled. With your help, the Committee will look into this matter. There are over 2,000 pieces of legislation that are waiting to be approved by the Committee on Delegated Legislation. From today, everybody will know that indeed Parliament is the only law-making body. I believe that you need to go a little bit further and say that Parliament must look for a way of gazetting everything it has done, so that there is a place where the public can go to and check whether a particular piece of legislation has the stamp of Parliament or not.

If you want to go for judicial review, you have to really search everywhere –maybe, on The Hansard only, to see whether a piece of legislation has the stamp of Parliament. We need to look at that in the future.

That work is cut out for your Committee.

Thank you.

Bring proposals to amend the law to save the public from quack legislation that is hurting so many people.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Hon. Oundo. Members are also at liberty to comment on the Gender-Based Violence (GBV) issue because it is also topical and important.

Give Hon. Oundo the next microphone. Take the next available microphone from the person next to you. Clerk-at-the-Table, give him the microphone.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. I am sorry, the microphone is not working. I have displaced a serious Member of this House who handles very serious issues for Members.

Article 94 of the Constitution is clear that the only body in this country authorised to make laws is the National Assembly. We, Members of Parliament, cannot shun away from that responsibility. Hence, we need to take our work seriously. I have the benefit of being a Member of the Select Committee on Delegated Legislation in the 12th Parliament. During that time, we came across some issues and things that baffled many of us and we wondered whether the Executive is serious about the legislative agenda of this country. There has always been a misunderstanding or deliberate misinterpretation of the Statutory Instruments Act, 2013 to determine what falls within the purview of that particular Act.

I encourage the new Members of the Committee to re-look at the Act and re-draft it, so that everything that has the force of law, or anything that results in pecuniary law to any particular person with regard to any form of levies and fees that are initiated or incorporated in this country can pass through the normal system.

One of the areas they need to continuously check on is the adequacy of public participation. We came across many instances where regulation making authorities would call a few compliant members, sit down with them and decide on the law or regulation and then they bring them to us. Based on the Statutory Instruments Act, 2013, one satisfies the Constitution and some elements of public participation. We are not allowed to look at the merits and demerits of the regulation. Those are areas we need to look at as we change the law. Probably, the Committee has competent Clerks.

They can take an inventory by looking at each and every Act of Parliament because they always publish subsidiary legislation. We need to find out whether they were ever enacted or not.

Finally, I welcome the GBV issue. It is a good thing to protect our women and the girl child. In your capacity, I also urge you to protect the boy child as well. He is suffering even much more than the girl child currently. All the attention and efforts have been directed at the girl child and women and yet there are very many men who are suffering because of GBV. Since we do not want to talk about it, we die silently. That is why the rate of suicide is far much higher amongst men than women. As women articulate issues of the girl child, they are also mothers to the boy child. The men are their husbands, fathers, brothers, uncles and mipango ya kando. They should include as much effort as they do for the women.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Hon. Ndindi Nyoro.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. Indulge me in reading out Article 94 of our Constitution, which provides that the legislative authority of the Republic is derived from the people and, at the national level, is vested in and exercised by Parliament.

The Constitution is very clear on who is mandated to make laws in this country. It is Parliament. There is no other body or organisation that should try or pretend to usurp the powers of this House. We have to play our rightful role in making laws for this country. It is our mandate. We should do what we do best.

With regard to charging any kind of levies, in so far as levies or fines are concerned, it is also a prerogative of this House. Therefore, we should send a very clear warning to anyone out there either associated with Government or from any other quarter that they should respect the Constitution of our country. It defines the roles of every organisation of every arm of Government. It has vested the powers of making laws to the Parliament of Kenya.

Hon. Speaker, on the issue of Gender Based Violence (GBV) , I speak as a son of a woman because I was raised by my mother after my father passed on. Also, fortunately, I am the only man in our home because the others are women, especially in our extended family. I know the value of women and the role they play in our economy and households. As leaders in this Parliament and men of the Republic of Kenya, we should be in the forefront protecting our women and the girl child. We can do much more with the National Government Constituencies Development Fund (NG-CDF) by ensuring that our girls are well educated. This is because they play a very critical role in our economy similar to that played by men.

For example, from where I sit in Kiharu Constituency, when we do any kind of hiring, we are usually obliged to gender. By doing so, we end up having a 50-50 gender balance or in some circumstances more women. As we do so, we should also protect the interests of the boy child. This is because in recent years, we have seen many organisations on the forefront championing the rights and privileges of our ladies to the detriment of our boys.

I do not know whether this happens only in Kiharu but I have found that over 80 percent of the teaching staff in most schools are ladies. This is a good leap forward but it is also a reminder that even as we promote the rights and privileges of women, we must not leave the male gender behind. Instead, we should incorporate everyone as we move the country forward.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Hon. Umulkher.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker, for granting me this opportunity. I would like to speak on GBV. It is good that you gave a communication on the importance of acknowledging that the beast called GBV lives amidst us. This year’s theme is unity.

This means we should unite to end any kind of violence against women and girls. I am glad that Hon. Ndindi Nyoro mentioned that he is a proud son of a woman. We know the roles that women play in our society. In all spheres, without a woman there will be no man. We are your mothers, wives, sisters and girlfriends – I was forced to say “girlfriends.”

Hon. Speaker, if a woman is empowered, the whole society is empowered. I want to assure the men who fear that the boy child has been neglected that when a woman is empowered, the boy child also gets empowered.

On a point of order, Hon. Speaker.

Yes Hon. Ndindi Nyoro.

Hon. Speaker, this is a House of records. What the hon. Member has insinuated has gone on record. She said she was forced to say “girlfriends.” I do not know who forced her. I wonder whether it is the weather, a colleague or her mind. If it is a colleague, I do not think it is good to impute improper motives because we are equals in this House. No one has the capacity to force or coerce any other Member into saying anything that is not in their line of thought.

You are absolutely right. Hon. Member, nobody should force you to say anything.

Hon. Umulkher Harun (Nominated, ODM) : Hon. Speaker, nobody forced me to say anything. A girlfriend is a potential wife.

It is only that I left out that bit. To all those waiting to be wives, this is an assurance to them. In any case, being a wife is not the end of life. One can remain single and be a proud woman.

Hon. Speaker, GBV comes in all forms and men could perhaps be inflicting GBV on their wives unconsciously. Emotional abuse is one of the ways. An example is when you nag a woman on a daily basis on how the children have not performed well, or through denial of conjugal rights. We have seen that the majority of working people are women. We all go home very tired. Unfortunately, the roles have shifted to women as men have decided to be bystanders. I will not delve much into issues to do with men.

The issue at hand is violence committed against women, like FGM, early marriages and physical abuse of our young girls and women. We see children being defiled. Unfortunately, such incidences happen to those who are poverty stricken and they are intimidated to not report such cases of violence. The only way we can overcome this is through taking our boys and girls to school so that when they mature, they can decide for themselves and make informed decisions on issues pertaining to their lives.

Hon. Speaker, the abuse inflicted upon me versus that inflicted on a girl in a remote village in Mandera is different. I will be able to speak out for my rights, unlike that uneducated girl. I urge all of you to allocate some funds towards educating the girl child. That is the only way we can overcome this menace.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker.

Hon. Members, I will give chance to two more Members on either side of the House then we close this matter. I recognise Hon. Emmanuel Wangwe.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker, for allowing me to weigh in on your communication about the regulations. First, I would like to thank you for

your guidance to the House with respect to Article 94 because it was very timely. It is a ruling of its own kind and you really hit where it matters.

What happens in most Government sectors is that they assume that they make laws in their boardrooms. Once they make those decisions, they end up harassing Kenyans without following the due process. Through your guidance today, I wish to call upon the Chairperson of the

Committee on Implementation to take up your communication so that it can be clear to all that the

Member for Kisumu West.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker, for this opportunity. For the record, my constituency is Kisumu West.

Not Kisumu Town West?

Not Kisumu Town West.

The word ‘Town’ is expunged from the record.

Hon. Speaker, I expected you to know that constituency by its real name because of past electoral experiences that we have had between the Forum for the Restoration of Democracy–Kenya (FORD-K) and the Orange Democratic Party (ODM) . That constituency has always been represented by a Member of FORD-K, but this time round, a Member of the ODM Party is representing it.

I know it very well, congratulations.

My constituency is Kisumu West. Thank you, Hon. Speaker, for indulging me even though I do not have my card. I would like to make a comment on gender-based violence (GBV) . As the Vice-Chairperson of the Kenya Women Parliamentarians Association (KEWOPA) , I would like to thank you for extending that invitation to Members of Parliament because GBV is not specific to any class. It is experienced amongst the very elite in society and amongst the vulnerable groups.

The theme of this year’s 16 Days of Activism is “UNITE! Activism to end violence against women and girls”. It is very appropriate because this vice cannot only be fought by one side of the gender divide. When we unite as Members of Parliament, as leaders in our society, as the elite members of the society, and as vulnerable members in the society, we will all be contributing to the end of this vice. The Constitution dictates that all Kenyans, regardless of their sex, are equal and should be treated with dignity, but GBV denies victims that dignified opportunity. If we unite as Kenyans, we will be furthering the effects of the Constitution that we passed in 2010.

Once again, I thank you for this opportunity. I welcome all Members to be present tomorrow between 7.00 a.m. and 9.00 a.m. Hon. Speaker, we are counting on you, as the leader of the National Assembly, to be present. We will really appreciate that.

Hon. Ruweida Obo.

Ahsante, Mheshimiwa Spika kwa kunipatia nafasi hii ya kuchangia swala hili la janga la ukatili wa kijinsia. Kwa hakika, tunajua kuwa janga hili lipo na limekuwa donda sugu. Watu wengi wamepitia shida hizi na Serikali imetumia njia nyingi kujaribu kupigana na janga hili lakini bado hatujafikia pale tunapotakikana kuwa.

Kila kituo cha polisi kinapaswa kiwe na kitengo ambacho kinahudumia mambo ya kijinsia lakini hadi sasa, vitengo hivi havijakuwa na nguvu za kusaidia zaidi. Wamejaribu lakini tunaomba wapewe nguvu zaidi ili tuwe na polisi wa kike watakaokuwa kwenye vitengo hivi ili wasaidie akina mama ambao wanakumbwa na shida hizi za ukatili wa kijinsia.

Ningeomba nitoe ushauri kwamba ni kweli akina mama nchi nzima wanakumbwa na janga hili lakini mama wa Lamu anapata shida nyingi zaidi kushinda yule wa Nairobi. Hii ni kwa sababu katika Eneo Bunge langu la Lamu Mashariki, usafiri ni tatizo kubwa. Lazima mtu atumie mbinu zote za usafiri. Lazima utumie barabara, ndege, piki piki na pia mashua. Tatitzo hili likimtokea mtu wa eneo la Ishakani, itakuwa vigumu zaidi kupata usaidizi kushinda mtu aliye hapa Nairobi.

Ningeomba kuwa kwa yote yatakayofanywa, laini ya usaidizi 1195, yaani helpline, iweze kuimarishwa. Laini hiyo husaidia sana kuokoa waadhiriwa wa ukatili wa kijinsia. Ingekuwa muhimu kwa Serikali kuimarisha laini hiyo kwa sababu ukiwa na tatizo, unapaswa kupiga namba hiyo. Nataka Wakenya wanisikize. Unapokumbwa na tatizo kama hilo, kama huwezi kufika hospitalini, piga simu kwa 1195. Namba hiyo ni nzuri na inatusaidia sana. Hata sisi Wabunge tunapopata matatizo, huwa tunawapigia na wanatuelezea jinsi ya kufanya kama hatujui.

Jambo linalowatatiza ni kuwa hawana uwezo wa kupata ndege na vifaa vya usafiri. Laini hiyo ikiimarishwa zaidi, itasaidia sana kwa sababu katika kusaidia matatizo haya, wakati mwingine wanapambana na forces na inakuwa vigumu sana. Pengine msichana amepewa biskuti au matunda ya mikebe na anaona kama amefika ilhali anatumiwa vibaya. Wakati mwingine mama akipigwa, inakuwa shida sana kupambana na hizo kesi zote. Lakini, Serikali inaweza kusaidia na kuungana mkono na Safaricom, the Office of the President na United States Agency for International Development (USAID) . Tunaomba watilie jambo hili mkazo ili kuwe na kitengo maalum cha kipekee cha kusaidia kesi hizi kutoka mwanzo hadi mwisho pale kortini.

Thank you. Let us have Hon. Tindi Mwale.

Ahsante sana, Mheshimiwa Spika. Namimi pia nitajitahidi nizungumze Kiswahili sanifu kama dadangu kutoka Lamu.

Kwanza, nakushukuru kama Mwanakamati wa Kamati ya Bunge ya Sheria iliyokabidhiwa uamuzi huu. Namuona Mwenyekiti wangu hapa, sijui kama atapata muda wa kuzungumza lakini kama Mwanakamati, nakushukuru kwa uamuzi wako wa busara sana, haswa tukizingatia sheria. Utapata kuwa Wakenya wengi wamehangaika sana kwa sababu ya kupata sheria ambayo imeletwa bila kupitia Bungeni na kujadiliwa na Wabunge ambao wameteuliwa na wananchi. Tunapaswa tujadiliane ili tuone ni sheria ipi nzuri na ni ipi ambayo itawadhuru wananchi. Kwa hivyo, Mheshimiwa Spika, nakushukuru na pia nashukuru wenzangu ambao wameunga mkono uamuzi huo.

Pia, ninaunga mkono uamuzi wako kuhusu mambo ya kijinsia. Jamii ambayo haizingatii kutunga ama kuweka sheria ambazo zinalinda wanawake na akina dada haiwezi ikanawiri. Ninaunga mkono uamuzi huo lakini sisi pia kama wanaume, tunaomba kwamba sheria hiyo ipitishiwe. Hii ni kwa sababu siku hizi, hata wanaume wanapigwa nyumbani. Sio wanawake tu wanaopigwa pekee yao. Wanaume pia wanateseka. Tunataka tuwe na jamii ambayo zinazingatia mambo yananoweza kutuendeleza.

Kwa niaba ya Kamati yetu, ninakuunga mkono na kukushukuru kwa uamuzi wako.

Next is the Member for Naivasha. Justice Kemei, you seem to be very restless. I will also give you an opportunity.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker, for this chance to comment on the issue of GBV. Maybe you do not know this, but allow me to inform you that in the 9th Parliament, I was supposed to be the representative for rape victims in Naivasha. We had very many rape cases until I had to establish a safe house for our girls, which has always been fully occupied. As a society, we need to take GBV advocacy seriously.

Hon. Speaker, I also established a gender desk which is working overtime. I thank the police in Naivasha because they have been very positive about this. We are fathers and mothers of both boys and girls. We need to start from here. Fathers here and out there, please, take your boys with you wherever you go when it comes to family matters. Like Hon. Ndindi says, you will find that most teachers are female. When you leave boys to be raised by their mothers, eventually you will complain because mothers go to weddings, markets and many places. When these young boys eventually grow up, they do not want their mothers’ company, but they do not know any other life. Please, take them along with you because it is very important that they start learning masculine roles so that they can become better husbands who will not batter or insult their wives. This cuts across the board. We need to take our boys on board. We need to take the girls to their rightful position, and we need to advocate how bad gender-based violence is. We really need to take seriously. It is so serious that even when I am sitting in the office, the men shy away. You will see the mother complaining about an incidence, but the father will not. Fathers, please, take the boys along, as we take the girls along and then build a society that is responsive.

Hon. Justice Kemei. Hon. Justice Kemei (Sigowet/Soin, UDA) : Thank you, Hon. Speaker, for the opportunity you have given me so that I can also add my voice to the two issues which you have passed a very good Communication on.

The 2010 Constitution gives sovereign power to the people of this country. The power to legislate is given to the National Assembly, the Senate, and the entire Parliament. The import of statutory instruments is to enable ministries, departments and agencies to pass certain issues that are of essence and which must be done immediately. But all those statutory instruments must come to Parliament for us to give an input and give them the force of law.

I want to ask the Committee on Delegated Legislation to recall all statutory instruments that have been issued out there and which have not passed through Parliament so that we can weigh in on all of them. Again, I want to ask the Committee on Delegated Legislation to make sure that they amend the 2013 Statutory Instruments Act so that we can give timelines within which delegated legislation can lapse if it does not come to Parliament. I was suggesting that they can be enforced for a period of about three months beyond which if they do not come to Parliament, they become null and void.

Gender based violence at this time and age is primitive and abhorable, especially violence meted against women. We must stand up against GBV, as the 13th Parliament and as a people, and any kind of violence meted against our girls and women.

Thank you for giving me this opportunity. I want to be as brief as that so that my colleagues can also get a chance to air their views.

Hon. Member, I want to end here, but I will give you a minute because I had wanted Hon. Justice Kemei to be the last. Give the Member the microphone.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. This comes as a relief to Kenyans. I am happy that you have communicated on the statutory instruments. These

people have been misusing these instruments by coming up with rules and regulations that are affecting the citizens and the whole country without necessarily passing through the House that is supposed to come up with laws in this country. This is the only House that is mandated to come up with laws. It has been a problem and especially when the Central Bank of Kenya came up with the rules where they were saying that you cannot withdraw more than Ksh1 million, or when you are depositing even a Ksh1 million or Ksh2 million, you are asked so many questions which are unnecessary. This will put a stop to such and will never be used again. This should be the only House that passes laws.

I am sure this House is fully aware that GBV happens to both male and female. When one talks about GBV, the only thing that comes to mind is female, but males are also beaten thoroughly in their houses. That also needs to be considered and has to come to an end.

Clerk, next Order. Leader of the Majority Party, we are in Order No.5.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker. Since I did not get a chance to contribute on the other one, let me also take this opportunity to appreciate the delegation from Baringo County Assembly led by their Leader of the Majority Party, Hon. Tallam, and their Whip, Hon. Kibet, whom I worked with some years back at the Standard Group.

The Member for Tiaty is asking me to appreciate the Leader of the Minority and the Whip from the oldest Party in the country. I appreciate that Baringo County Assembly has, indeed, set a very good example to other county assemblies being an Assembly that has demonstrated that it can act independently. I commend them because it is the only county assembly in this country which stood firm against the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) in the last regime.

I beg to lay the following Papers on the Table of the House: An addendum to submission of the 12th batch of nominees to the National Government Constituencies Development Fund

(NG-CDF)

Committees for National Assembly’s approval for Isiolo South Constituency.

Reports of the Auditor-General and Financial Statements of the following institutions for the Year ended 30th June 2021 and the certificates therein:

Thank you, Leader of the Majority Party. Hon. Deputy Speaker.

Hon. Speaker, I beg to lay the following Paper on the Table of the House today, Wednesday, 30th November 2022:

Report on the 61st Session of the Organisation of African Caribbean and Pacific States Parliamentary Assembly and the 42nd Session of the African, Caribbean and Pacific, and European (ACP- EU) Joint Parliamentary Assembly (JPA) held in Maputo, Mozambique from 25th October to the 2nd of November 2022.

Next is the Chair, Select Committee on Delegated Legislation.

Hon. Speaker, I beg to lay the following Paper on the Table of the House today, Wednesday, 30th November 2022:

Report of the Select Committee on Delegated Legislation on its consideration of the Public Finance Management

Regulations, 2022

.

Thank you, Hon. Member. Chairperson, Departmental Committee on Energy.

I am told the Chair is not ready. Clerk, kindly call out Order No.6.

Hon. Gladys Boss.

Hon. Speaker, I beg to give notice of the following Motion:

That, this House notes the Report on the 61st Session of the Organisation of African Caribbean and Pacific States Parliamentary Assembly and the 42nd Session of the African, Caribbean and Pacific, and European (ACP- EU) Joint Parliamentary Assembly (JPA) held in Maputo, Mozambique from 25th October to the 2nd of November 2022 laid on the Table of this House on Wednesday, 30th November 2022.

Next, the Chairperson of the Committee on Delegated Legislation.

I beg to give notice to the following Motion:

That, this House adopts the Report on the Committee on Delegated Legislation on its consideration of the Public Finance Management Regulations 2022, laid on the Table of the House on Wednesday, 30th November 2022 and pursuant to the provisions of Section 24(4) of the Public Finance Management Act, 2012, approves the Public Finance Management Regulations 2022 published as a Legal Notice No.54 on 1st April 2022.

Next is the Chairperson, the Departmental Committee on Energy, but we will defer that.

Next Order.

Hon. Members, let us go to Questions. Member for Kuresoi, Hon. Joseph Tonui’s Question is deferred.

Yes, I am present. Hon. Speaker, thank you for giving me the opportunity to ask the Cabinet Secretary for Energy and Petroleum the following Question:

Thank you, Hon. Were. The Chairperson, the Departmental Committee on Energy will respond accordingly. Member for Wajir County, Fatuma Jehow.

Question 064/2022

Hon. Speaker, I beg to ask the Cabinet Secretary for Energy and Petroleum regarding the power blackouts in Wajir the following Question:

Thank you, Hon. Member. The next Question by Naomi Waqo, Member for Marsabit County, is deferred on her request.

Question 074/2022

That, this House approves the Report of the Select Committee on the National Government Constituencies Development Fund, laid on the Table of the House on Tuesday, 29th November 2022, and pursuant to the provisions of Section 43 (4) of the National Government Constituency Development Fund Act, 2015 and paragraphs 5 (2) and (10) of the National…

I am advised that you started by saying: ‘This House approves.’ Your Motion says: ‘Adopts.’

Adopts.

Yes. You can put it on record accordingly.

That, this House adopts the Report of the Select Committee on the National Government Constituencies Development Fund, laid on the Table of the House on Tuesday, 29th November 2022, and pursuant to the provisions of Section 43 (4) of the National Government Constituency Development Fund Act, 2015 and Paragraphs 5 (2) and (10) of the National Government Constituencies Development Fund Regulations, 2016, approves the list of nominees for appointment to the following 103 constituencies’ committees and of the National Government Constituencies Development Fund.

79. ELDAS CONSTITUENCY (Revised)

80. GILGIL CONSTITUENCY (Revised)

81. GITHUNGURI CONSTITUENCY (Revised)

82. KAJIADO WEST CONSTITUENCY (Revised)

83. KAPENGURIA CONSTITUENCY (Revised)

84. KIENI CONSTITUENCY (Revised)

85. KITUI SOUTH CONSTITUENCY (Revised)

86. MAARA CONSTITUENCY (Revised)

87. MARAKWET WEST CONSTITUENCY (Revised)

88. OL JORO OROK CONSTITUENCY (Revised)

89. OTHAYA CONSTITUENCY (Revised)

90. RONGAI CONSTITUENCY (Revised)

Name them.

I cannot mention the Members. No. Please, allow me.

Chairperson, I have a point of order from Hon. Christopher Aseka, Member for Khwisero. What is out of order, Hon. Member?

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. Would the Chairperson name the constituencies that have not submitted their names because they are delaying the whole process?

Hon. Chairperson, would you like to make a comment on that?

Mr Temporary Speaker, I will not name the constituencies. I have only told you that they are five. You can do your due diligence.

Hon. Wangwe, what is out of order?

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. Is the Chairperson in order to refer to you, the way you look, everyone can see that you are a lady, as Mr Speaker?

I will allow the Member to proceed. I am sure he has noted that. It has happened in between the transition between myself and the substantive Speaker. You may proceed.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker.

On a point of order.

Ni nini tena?

There are so many points of order. Hon. Kamket, what is out of order?

Hon. Temporary Speaker, you heard the words that the Chairperson of the National Government Constituency Development Fund (NG-CDF) used. That those Members who had not given their names are lazy and unfit to hold office. The Hansard can bear me witness that he used the word “lazy”. Is the Member here in order? Do you not think that he is imputing improper motive on the Members? There could be difficult political circumstances that those Members are facing on the ground. He must be made to withdraw the words he has used that the Members are lazy.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, while on that, it is important that the Member names those constituencies because back there in Tiaty, my people might be thinking that I am one of them yet I was among the first to submit. It is important to name those people.

On a point of order, Hon. Temporary Speaker.

Is it all on the same matter, on the word lazy?

Yes.

Since all the three points of order I am seeing here are referring to the same matter of lazy, I would like to ask the Chairperson to make a comment on that.

To withdraw and apologise!

Hon. Temporary Speaker, for ease of the work of this House, let me withdraw the word “lazy” and replace it with the words: “They have not been able to do their due diligence on their duty in their constituencies”.

It is the same one.

On a point of order, Hon. Temporary Speaker.

Hon. Wilberforce Oundo, Member for Funyula.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, the Chairperson of the Committee is misleading the House and the nation. Number one, I do not know which Members he is referring to. If they are Members of Parliament, then he is completely out of order. In the NG-CDF Act of 2015, Members of Parliament have no role at all in submitting the names of members who sit in the Constituency Development Fund committees. That is the work of the fund accounts manager.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, can you, please, request the Member to put the record straight so that we do not continuously confuse Kenyans, and allow busy bodies to exploit the misunderstanding that seems to be now the fodder of all the busybodies in this county.

Hon. Chairperson, withdraw and apologise.

Of course, I withdraw and apologise, so, close the matter.

Let us make progress, Hon. Members.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, I want to also inform the House that the first Gazette Notice of the 123 constituencies was issued today. We are in the process of getting funding very soon. In fact, possibly this week we will get the first batch.

Rachael Nyamai) left the Chair)

took the Chair) The Chair has now changed again. The change is too much. We should be notified.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, all this has happened because we want the children of Kenya who are the beneficiaries of school fees which is going to be given out in January to go to school. We, therefore, as Members go for recess from tomorrow, they should ask their committees and fund managers to do the necessary arrangements so that we have good organisation in the constituencies. Although they are not participating, they are the fathers of the constituencies.

Finally, I would like to recognise members of the county assembly (MCAs) of Baringo who have visited.For sure,our Centre for Parliamentary Studies and Training (CPST) is going to do a lot. Many people have not understood the kind of school which Parliament has. The school is going to assist the young legislators in the country to reform and make the country better.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, I beg to move.

Who is going to second?

May I ask Hon. Wangwe to second.

Hon. Wangwe, Member for Navakholo, proceed and second.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I wish to second the very able report as moved by the Chairperson of NG-CDF Committee and just

add a rider on the last point which he has made. It appears like the Government is moving with speed to make sure that the children of this country get good education, paid by the NG-CDF. The NG-CDF facilitates every corner of the country. Once the NG-CDF is up and running, I am pretty sure the Government will sit comfortably and see to it that the Competency Based Curriculum (CBC) programme is implemented and every Kenyan will be at home.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I second.

We can proceed with the debate. I have proposed the Question. There is nobody?

Put the Question.

You are here? Whoever is there proceed. Order!

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker, for this opportunity to contribute a bit. I thank the Chairperson for tabling the remaining names of the committees and are ready for gazettement. What I would like to ask is that the names should be gazetted so that a circular can be sent to the funds account manager for the proposals to be made for the projects. Before they are gazetted, there are no proposals which can be taken to the Board. So, the Chairperson should move with speed to make sure that the Board has gazetted the names of the committee members of each constituency.

Put the Question.

Order, Hon. Members. We cannot put the Question. You understand and you perfectly well know that we cannot put the Question. The tradition of the House has changed in the last ten years. You cannot put the Question if there is no quorum. This is deferred to tomorrow. So, you better be all here tomorrow when this will be put on the Order Paper.

On a point of order, Hon. Temporary Speaker.

What is your point of order?

Hon. Temporary Speaker, my name is Dr Ojiambo Oundo, Member for Funyula, Busia County.

Yes, I know you are the Member for Funyula.

That is one of the most important constituencies in this country.

The Temporary Speaker

: Proceed.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, I rise under provisions of Standing Order 53 (3) to request that we defer putting of the Question.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker.

Order, Hon. Members. I call upon the Mover to reply.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, I thank the two Members who have contributed on the way forward, in terms of how the National Government Constituencies Development Fund (NG-CDF) should be. Hon. Mwalyo has really given us the way forward. He is a Member of my Committee. For sure, we need to gazette these names so that we can ask the fund managers and the committee to work tirelessly and very fast to bring in their project proposals, so that the benefits which we look forward to are achieved at the shortest time possible in the country.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, I beg to reply.

Hon. Members, I have accepted the point of order that was raised by the Member for Funyula. I defer putting the Question to tomorrow afternoon.

Next Order.

It says expressly:

Proceed.

Thank you very much, Hon. Temporary Chairperson. We are privy to the amendment by Hon. Kareke Mbiuki. It came to the Committee and we checked the issue and we do not have a problem with the proposed amendment. To put more light into it, five counties were to benefit from the conditional grant from the national Government, in regard to building their headquarters. Tharaka-Nithi is part of the five counties. Unfortunately, in the allocation of the said money and with the rationalisation of the budget as we are doing, only Tharaka-Nithi was affected up to nil. Therefore, we thought it was good for all the counties to share the available resources equally because they had made a lot of progress in terms of construction.

Fair enough. In that case, let us have the Mover to move the amendment.

That, the First Schedule to the Bill be amended in column B—

As articulated by the Chairperson of the Budget and Appropriations Committee, the amendment seeks to ensure Tharaka-Nithi County is one of the five counties that are supposed to benefit from the additional allocation for construction of county headquarters since it had been left out. The available resources of Ksh163 million will be divided across the five counties, so that Tharaka-Nithi can be part of those who will benefit. I thank you,

Fair enough. In that case I will propose the Question.

Thank you very much, Hon. Temporary Chairperson. I am looking at the Bill from the Senate on the five counties that were to benefit from the

construction of headquarters. Just to bring Members to speed, by the time we began the model of county governments, some of counties inherited the former district commissioners’ offices as their headquarters. Unfortunately, five counties neither had premises to renovate or occupy. The national Government gave them a conditional grant; which they have been receiving for the last six years. These counties are: Isiolo, Lamu, Nyandarua, Tana River and Tharaka-Nithi. They have been receiving the conditional grants from the national Government. Unfortunately, this time round, Tharaka-Nithi, which had progressed quite well in terms of construction, was left out with regards to the rationalisation of Ksh300 billion which we are trying to save.

Hon. Temporary Chairperson, the feeling of our Committee is that the available resources should be shared amongst the counties. This is because even the one that was left out had really progressed in terms of percentage in construction.

The Temporary Chairperson (Hon. Farah Maalim): Fair enough. I will now put the Question.

(Question, that the words to be left out be left out, put and agreed to) (Question, that the words to be inserted in place thereof be inserted, put and agreed to) (Question, that the words to be inserted be inserted, put and agreed to)

Hon. Chairperson, I beg to move that the Committee do report to the House its consideration of the County Governments Additional Allocation (No.2) Bill (Senate Bill No.4 of 2022) and its approval thereof without amendments.

The Temporary Chairperson

: With amendments.

Sorry, with amendments because of the amendments by the Member for Maara Constituency.

The Temporary Chairperson:

: Hon. Members, I now put the Question, for reporting.

I call upon the Chairperson of the Budget and Appropriations Committee to report to the House.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, I beg to report that the Committee of the whole House has considered the County Governments Additional Allocation (No.2) Bill, (Senate Bill No.4 of 2022) , and approved the same with amendments.

The Mover of the Bill to move agreement with the report.

Thank you very much, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I beg to move that the House do agree with the Committee in the said Report. I also request Hon. Abdullahi to second the Motion for agreement with the report of the Committee of the whole House.

Hon. Abdullahi, you have the floor.

Thank you Hon. Temporary Speaker, for giving me this opportunity. I second.

Fair enough. I think we are through except for putting the Question for adoption which will be deferred. I will propose the Question.

I have proposed but I will not put the Question for obvious reasons. I will put it tomorrow. Is tomorrow okay? Tomorrow it will be in the Order Paper for the final bit of putting the Question.

Next Order!

Where is the Leader of the Majority Party? Hon. Ndindi Nyoro, where is the Leader of the Majority Party? This is the only business remaining for the rest of the day. It will not reflect well on us, if he is not here to move this Motion. Do you wish to move the Motion on his behalf?

Hon. Temporary Speaker, I see the Deputy Whip of the Majority Party is here. Give us one minute to consult.

On a point of order, Hon. Temporary Speaker.

Deputy Whip of the Majority Party, will you be able to move the Motion on behalf of the Leader of the Majority Party? What is your point of order, Hon. Millie Odhiambo? I previously knew you as the Member of Parliament for Mbita Constituency. I do not know where you are now.

I am the Member of Parliament for Suba North Constituency. It is the same Mbita but the name has now changed to Suba North just to acknowledge that we are Subas.

Please, proceed.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, while they are still worried about what to do, I just want to indicate that if they do not have anything to move at the moment, you could use your discretion under Standing Order 1 to allow me to raise the issue of growing insecurity in Suba North. Two young men have been killed in the last two weeks. Fortunately, we have had---

The Deputy Whip of the Majority Party is ready to move. Proceed.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, if she had not been ready, I would have raised the issue of insecurity in Suba North.

You have made your point. I am sure the people of Suba North are watching how serious you are when it comes to representing them here. Please proceed, Hon. Naomi Waqo.

Leader of the Majority Party, do you wish to move the Motion yourself or will you allow the Deputy Whip of the Majority Party to move it? Proceed, Deputy Whip of the Majority Party. You have authorisation from the Leader of the Majority Party.

Order, Hon. Naomi. Could you please take your seat? The Leader of the Majority Party has additional papers that have come late and he intends to table them. Proceed, Hon. Ichung’wah.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker, for your indulgence. The Deputy Whip of the Majority Party was well-briefed and was ready to move the Sessional Paper.

It is not your tradition to be away when you are supposed to move something. I understood that you must have been behind here doing something else.

Yes, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I was following up on some papers that we were waiting for.

With your indulgence, I beg to lay the following papers on the Table:

Proceed, Deputy Whip of the Majority Party.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, I beg to move the following Motion:

THAT, this House adopts Sessional Paper No.2 of 2021 on the National Agricultural Policy, laid on the Table of the House on Tuesday, 8th February 2022.

The agricultural sector is a major contributor to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) . It employs over 80 per cent of Kenya’s rural workforce and provides for more than 15.5 per cent of formal employment. It further contributes to GDP through manufacturing, distribution and services sector and accounts for 69.7 per cent of the total export earnings in 2018.

The Kenya Vision 2030 recognises the significance of agriculture towards its goals and aims to achieve an average GDP growth rate of 10 per cent per year up to 2030. The broad objective of this Policy is to improve food and nutrition security and maximise incomes through optimum utilisation of resources in the agricultural sector. In actualising the broad objective, the national Government and county governments will ensure that households and national food and nutrition security are attained through innovative and cost-effective measures linked to the country’s long- term development goals.

The goals of the policy are:

Who is going to second you?

I request the Leader of the Majority Party to second.

Leader of the Majority Party, proceed and second your own Deputy Whip of the Majority Party.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I rise to second this Sessional Paper No. 2 of 2021 on the National Agricultural Policy. As has been clearly articulated by the Deputy Whip of the Majority Party, Hon. Naomi Waqo, this policy speaks to one of the key areas of our economy - agriculture. If Members listened carefully, there is an appreciation that agriculture is one of the functions that was devolved to our county governments. There is need to have a clear national policy on how we can transact business between the national Government and our county governments; and policy issues under the new Constitution being harboured in the Ministries such as this one for agriculture. It is, therefore, important that Ministries develop a sessional paper like this one that will guide us, as a nation, on how we can grow our agriculture and make it meaningful not only to the farmers, but also to our economy and to the millions of consumers of food who are the population that has send us to represent them in this House.

This Sessional Paper speaks to issues to do with value addition and how we will improve productivity in our country, and it is in line with the Kenya Kwanza Manifesto. I remember as we traversed the country during the campaign season, we engaged millions of Kenyans across all constituencies. I was particularly lucky to be present in a number of agricultural counties like

Bomet. Farmers were very articulate on their needs and their aspirations in terms of agriculture and how they want agriculture improved; both by the national Government and county governments, and the roles that each of the two levels of governments would play.

In my own County of Kiambu, farmers who farm coffee and tea, dairy farmers and those like myself who rear pigs - and Hon. Temporary Speaker, by virtue of your religion, I know this may not be music to your ears - but pig rearing was one of the most lucrative farming activities in my county and in many counties in this country. But following the collapse of the Uplands Bacon Factory and almost the monopolisation of that sector by one or two players in the industry, farmers are then left at the mercy of a few monopolistic firms. I do not want to call them cartels because they are corporates and firms; but they operate in a manner that is almost equivalent to how cartels operate. They are also in agricultural production and, therefore, determine the price of commodities for farmers, and other business people who would act as middlemen in this trade. This kind of behaviour pervades not just in the pig rearing industry and meat processing industry, but also in our tea and coffee sector.

Earlier, you heard the Member for Githunguri speak about the Statutory Instruments Act, and the Regulations that were brought to this House in the last Parliament; Regulations that have in a very negative manner affected how our coffee farmers make an earning; and to an extent, take away corporations that were otherwise, State corporations; and the story of Kenya Planters Co- operative Union (KPCU). This is a story for another day.

I am saying this because agriculture is the backbone of our economy. Since our days in school, we were told this is an agriculturally based economy and that agriculture is the backbone of our economy. If something has gone wrong with our economy, then, it has everything to do with what has gone wrong with our agricultural sector. That is why it was important to have a national policy and a sessional paper that speaks to how the Government intends to make agriculture pay farmers – as we said - from the bottom-up. I want to assure Members that, indeed, this Sessional Paper speaks to some of the issues that were well articulated in the Kenya Kwanza Manifesto; things that are already being done in terms of facilitating farmers to access cheaper inputs through the subsidised fertiliser programme that has already started, and farmers in many parts of this country who enjoyed the short rains have benefited from this program.

This Sessional Paper speaks to issues to do with marketing and value addition of agricultural produce. It also speaks to issues to do with extension services and the functions that county governments must play in ensuring that extension services are available to our farmers; to those who are in crop farming and animal husbandry so that they get extension services to make sure that they get the right seeds and the right varieties of animals that they can rear.

Because of time, allow me to urge Members to support this Sessional Paper and pass it to enable our country move to the next level; remembering that agriculture is one of our core and key pillars in the development of our country, and resuscitation of the dying economy.

With those few remarks, I beg to second.

Nobody wants to contribute to this? Hon. Julius Sunkuli, I can see your name here. Proceed.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, I wish to make a few comments about this National Policy. To start with, it is a Sessional Paper, but I do not know the

exact status of Sessional Papers in this country. Sessional Paper No.10 is the only one that we all remember. It was crafted by the late Hon. Tom Mboya in 1965. It defined a policy on African socialism which we still remember up to now. It was done by the first President of Kenya, Hon. Kenyatta’s Government, having been the Government that brought Independence to Kenya. Subsequently, we have been producing sessional papers; and I do not know whether these are white papers which are one stage before legislation, or whether it is just a statement that is going to gather dust in the libraries or bookshops. I do not know what it is, Hon. Temporary Speaker. What perplexes me more is the current Sessional Paper which was first tabled in this House in February, 2022. That means it is a Paper that was crafted by the Jubilee Government and has been adopted by the Kenya Kwanza Government. I would have loved to hear the Leader of the Majority Party or the Mover of the Motion relating the policies that are in this Sessional Paper to the policies and plans of Kenya Kwanza Government. Every time I hear a statement being made; to me, it does not seem like the Kenya Kwanza Government adopted the policies of the Jubilee Government. So, here we are! We are discussing a document that was drafted by a former Government and is going to be implemented by the current Government as it has been adopted. It still begs the question in my head: What is the status of sessional papers? After we have passed this Paper which is very clear that we will, what is the Government going to do with it?

For avoidance of raising a rhetorical question, I would like to say that the policies which have been drafted in the paper are quite enlightening and are good for ventilation. I am happy that the Sessional Paper has dedicated a good part of it on livestock. The development of livestock is one of the things that are being discussed in it.

In earlier sessional papers and policies of the Government, agriculture has been taken to mean farms, arable lands and commodities that farmers produce. Finally, this document has recognised livestock as a means of economic development for this country. I am begging in a serious way that this policy be implemented. Livestock is a way of life and the land in which we graze our animals must always continue to be treated as such. Some people look at our land and say that it is idle. Our land is for our livestock.

We need to request the Kenya Meat Commission (KMC) and other markets to help us market livestock commodities. Livestock is a way of life for many people. It contributes to about 12 per cent of our economy and we should therefore pay a lot of attention to it. I want to urge the Government that, as you adopt this Paper, please, bring this thing to reality so that we do not just talk about it.

The Member for Aldai.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker, I rise in support of the Sessional Paper on the National Agricultural Policy. Kenya is an agricultural economy and, as we have seen from the statistics, it contributes to a very big percentage in term of our Gross Domestic Product (GDP) . That GDP is what gives our country the necessary income that this country requires.

If we look at agriculture from time immemorial to date, we find that many agricultural products have fallen by the way side. Let us take an example of pyrethrum. Pyrethrum used to be a very big income earner in this country sometime back. Today, we do not have pyrethrum in our farms. There is also sugar-cane farming which has been suffering. Coffee is another crop that has a lot of issues in the market. Where I come from is a tea growing area. The farmers are really crying in terms of the pricing of tea and tea products. Maize farming has also been hit. The other day, we saw how maize farmers were crying and saying that they needed a maize board.

This policy, if implemented, will guarantee maximum returns. If any of these farmers sells their produce, they will know that the minimum they are going to get from their farms is A, B, C and D. This policy will also allow sustainability, not only for our farmers, but in terms of GDP as a country.

So, this policy comes in handy and it has come at the right time because agriculture is devolved and the policy is still at the national level. So, the link between the national Government and the county government in terms of implementation of agriculture in this country will really come a long way in helping us have a proper infrastructure and a proper system that farmers will benefit from their agricultural produce. This policy also recognises some of the treaties that we have with some of the regional blocks. Many of the agricultural products that we produce go outside the country to international markets and yet, there are regional blocks here in Africa which could become our main markets. They do not benefit from our agricultural produce.

I have the example of tea. I come from a tea growing area. Africa is a very good market for our tea. Yet, it is sold to other international markets. If we added value to that tea, it could actually get to the African table at a far better price for the farmer. This agricultural policy will help us. It will come in handy. When negotiating the treaties with other countries, the policy framework that has been put in place will help us, as a country, to benefit from our agriculture.

Most of the agreements that we enter into, the farmers are forced to buy products that are way too expensive and the price that the farmer gets at the end makes it very uneconomical. As a country, if we have a policy like this, we will guarantee minimum returns and ensure that farmers get the inputs at a fairly good price and guarantee the kind of revenue they need to get at the end.

So, I support this Sessional Paper. We look forward to the implementation of this policy so that the country can benefit and also the common mwananchi, the farmers, and especially those in Aldai can benefit.

I thank you.

The Member for Wajir West.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker for giving me this opportunity to contribute to this Session Paper No. 2 on the National Agricultural Policy.

This policy is long overdue, I support the policy as an individual, as a farmer and as a livestock keeper. Most of the policies in livestock and Bills that are in place today were formulated before 1963. No new legislations and no new policies, apart from this, have ever been introduced in this House after 1963. Therefore, it is an area which has been neglected for a while and we need to have policies such as this.

This policy will open up markets. It will increase the benefits of the livestock sector. It will allow the livestock farmer in Wajir West to access market, to get produce, to take the animal product to the market and to gain from it.

It is an issue that we need to address urgently so that people can benefit the soonest possible. I also want to urge this House to kindly support the Bill, the Livestock Bill that will be introduced in this House very soon and which will put in place the livestock marketing board and other necessary policies and legislations that are needed to take the livestock sector to a greater height.

The livestock sector has been greatly affected by both natural disasters, neglect from the Government side and even this House, which actually did not sufficiently address it. We believe that this country is not taking seriously the issue of livestock. This country does not think livestock is contributing to anything in this country. Livestock is one of the major contributors and it is one of the main income earners in this country. I believe the efforts that were put into only agriculture,

if they could have been reciprocated and equally done to the livestock keepers, that sub-sector could have been better than the agricultural producers in this country.

I support the policy. Thank you.

Hon. Member for Suba North.

Thank you Hon. Temporary Speaker.

I wish to support this policy. In supporting, I wish to indicate that, ordinarily, the policy should be coming before the law. But because we already have a legal framework in relation to a lot of issues dealing with agriculture, what would be required is to relook at some of the laws to ensure conformity with this policy.

One of the objectives that have been mentioned is that the policy seeks to transform crop, livestock and fish production. As a fisher woman, I want to talk to certain issues, but first of all, I just want to indicate that, as a country, we need to think about diversification. We are thinking the same way that we have thought over years and that is why, I think, Hon. Sunkuli was talking about Sessional Paper No 10. Many of us are still stuck. I think it was in 1965. I cannot remember when, but it was before I was born. If we are able to think about diversification… Like I saw at some point Nyeri people were being persuaded to eat fish, and they have actually started doing that very well. There is nothing stopping the people from my side of the world from embracing other things, including coffee.

There are places in my area where coffee can do well, but because we do not think that way, sometimes, it is a problem. One of my classmates, Bernard Michael, wrote to me something and I want to think about it in terms of diversification and innovation. He said that he had an opportunity, a long time ago, to work in my constituency with Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA) . He said he had in mind the idea of introducing coconut, both as an economic crop as well as aesthetics along the lake shores which extends all the way from Ouru to Karachuonyo. The project was frustrated because it was supported by DANIDA and Ben left. If you look at some of the issues that he is raising, however, there are things that we do not normally think about. If you are talking about Homabay County, we are thinking about potatoes, fish and maize, when we can actually diversify to coconut. Some of the things that he is suggesting we look at is identification of existing trees, tree nurseries with sufficient water supply, coconut seedling propagation training, supply of coconut seeds and propagation, community sensitisation and dissemination of values of coconut distribution and field planting. These are even some of the things that you would look at in line with climate change. Planting coconut in areas like Homabay would actually help with that.

Another issue that I did not hear the mention of is self-sufficiency. I am concerned about that because, on the one hand, you see the policy looking at food security but, at the same time, in terms of the actions that we are doing as a country, we are moving away from self-sufficiency by now looking at GMOs. If you want to go GMO way, we are moving away from self-sufficiency. If you want to be competitive as a country, we must have a competitive niche in our agriculture sector. We can only do that if we have control and not where we have a situation where in terms of even the crops and seedlings that we are going to use, we will still be looking at other countries.

I would want to talk a little about the fishing sector. One of the things that we need to do after this Policy is to provide urgent regulations to reduce conflict in the Lake. There is a very serious conflict between omena and Nile perch fishers. Sometimes, they even threaten to kill each other. There is a lot of potential for conflict. There is also a very clear need for regulations around caging, which is also creating a lot of issues.

One of the things that I did not hear was the agenda dimensions of this policy as we are talking about 16 days of activism of Gender Based Violence.

Finally, because I can see my time is up, let us think of the farmer and put our action where our mouths are, so that we do not forget the farmer. Farmers are crying out in this country.

I support and thank you.

The Member of Parliament for Mogotio, followed by the Member for Khwisero. Mogotio? Can you give him the microphone?

Thank you Hon. Speaker. I also stand to support the policy because agriculture is one of the main pillars of the economy of this country. It is facing a lot of challenges from climate change, change of weather patterns and rain patters, which has really affected agriculture. It also faces continuous low allocation of budget, low number of young people venturing into agriculture because they see it as for the old people and not fashionable. Agriculture comprises almost 80 per cent of the land mass of this country. That really depends on agriculture. From Mbalambala all the way to Busia to Lamu, people depend on agriculture. It is a serious business to invest in agriculture in this country. We should relook at policies and always improve them so that it becomes profitable to the people who are venturing in it.

I stand here to support the policy as a way of helping the people at the bottom of the economy towards improving agriculture. From extension officers, budgetary allocation, pest control and putting more energy into agriculture so that it improves the economy and affects so many people at the bottom of the economy to be able to enable them to move up the ladder to a country of self-sufficiency in terms of food and economy and not relying on relief or donor food or GMOs. If we do not invest and improve the policies on agriculture, we will end up relying on importation and sometimes having crises like we are having now because of lack of food. However, if we improve the economy through improving policies touching on agriculture, we will be able to improve this economy and will be able to allow our people to make money out of agriculture. It will become easy to govern the country, which has sufficient food and people have money.

Thank you for giving me this opportunity.

The Member of Parliament for Khwisero? Followed by the Member for West Mugirango.

Thank you Hon. Temporary Speaker. I also rise to support this Sessional Paper on the National Policy on Agriculture. As it was alluded to by the Mover, agriculture, from economical perspectives, plays a key role in the economy of this country. It accounts to about 80 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) . Agriculture also creates employment opportunities for many Kenyans in manufacturing, production and even the farming sector. This policy also speaks to the coordination between the county governments and the national Government. As you know, according to the Fourth Schedule of the Constitution, agriculture is devolved. However, there is need to coordinate between the national and county governments to ensure that agriculture is promoted.

This policy also speaks to transforming livestock, crop and even fish farming in the country. As we speak and support this policy, it is on us and upon Government to provide incentives to farmers so that they can increase and advance in their production.

Secondly, the national Government should promote capacity building among farmers so that they can adopt the current methods of production.

Lastly, the Government must also support value chain addition so that farmers can get value out of their produce.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker.

Member for West Mugirango, proceed.

Thank you Hon. Temporary Speaker for giving me this opportunity to also contribute to this Sessional Paper No 2 of 2021.

On behalf of the people of West Mugirango, I laud the Leader of the Majority Party for bringing forth this policy. Kenya is no doubt an agricultural economy. Hon. Temporary Speaker, even if we have lost quite a lot in the cash crop areas like tea, pyrethrum, coffee and matoke, it is important to have a uniform national policy that guides agriculture in this country. I agree that under the Fourth Schedule of the Constitution, agriculture is a devolved function. However, it is too important to be left to county governments alone. I really commend the national Government for spearheading a policy of this magnitude that will impact the largest employer in the Republic of Kenya.

It is also extremely important to know that as we come up with this Sessional Paper on the National Agricultural Policy paper, let it not be pro-rich or pro-big industries that are the big actors in the agricultural sector. According to the Kenya Kwanza Coalition bottom-up approach to business, the real farmers this Policy should target are the small-scale growers of every crop in this country. The big industries, farms or plantations have a way of sorting themselves out, in terms of getting cheap input, high quality employees and a market for their produce. The real challenge we have in this country is how to fix the small-scale farmer in the country, whether in the livestock sector or agrarian sector. That is when we will solve our problem. When I was growing up, our little farm generated enough for our consumption and surplus for the market.

As we stand today, many farmers depend on markets for a kilogramme of maize or beans. Kenya Kwanza Government must intervene and turn things upside down, so that every household provides food for itself, including the conventional non- agricultural areas of this country. I was told that all you need in Japan is 10 Kilogrammes of quality soil, hang it on a rafter of your roof and then plant your sukuma wiki. It will provide a meal for your household. These kinds of inventions are what we need to teach our children in school, so that as they grow up, they know that everybody can provide their own meals before they look at the Government for employment and other opportunities.

Large-scale farmers and plantations are automating their production, particularly the plucking of tea. This Parliament should bring a law that regulates this. If you employ people for 20 years and then you decide to automate, you will be required to train and equip them with alternative skills, so that they can get employment elsewhere, once they are declared redundant.

I support this Policy. I hope that it will impact positively on the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of this country.

I thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker.

Member for Kiharu.

Thank you very much, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I rise to support this Motion. Agriculture is a very important sector in our country because its entire value chain accounts for 20 to 30 per cent of our GDP. The whole value chain also accounts for 40 per cent of the entire employment in the Republic of Kenya and 70 per cent of the jobs in rural areas. This shows the importance which we must attach to the agricultural sector.

Agriculture has also many linkages both backward and forward, in terms of other industries; the basis of manufacturing as a sector is agriculture. This is because most of the manufacturing that we do is value addition to the produce that we get from agriculture. However, within manufacturing in terms of mechanical equipment, agriculture also accounts a lot in the few

areas that are mechanised within our agricultural sector. We must also note that many times we confuse farming and agriculture. Farming by all accounts in the entire value chain of agriculture accounts partly for 20 per cent. The value chain includes transportation, warehousing and value addition from farm to fork. Our farmers only account for about 20 per cent. This is the reason we must be deliberate in trying to capture as much as possible the value from the chain, and especially this value going to farmers. They work the most. They do most of the job but their returns are not commensurate to the effort that they put in.

In regards to the debate we have in our country around food prices, especially maize, we must be very clear as a Government and leadership not to confuse the role of the farmer or government in as far as the farmer and the Kenyan consumer is concerned. If we attach these two things together, one of the parties will be disenfranchised. If we assume that the role of the farmer is to feed Kenyans, then we will be going the wrong direction. The Government has peculiar roles which are diverse. One of it is to make sure all Kenyans are fed. However, on the other side, they make sure that farmers are well remunerated.

In economics, we usually give analogies. One of them is that it is not by the benevolence of the baker that we get our daily bread or that of the butcher that we get meat. In this respect, it is not by the benevolence of the farmer that we get our daily meal. It is out of the self-interest to make money that we get unintended consequences. That should be left at that. The farmers should be left to pursue their margins. However, on the other side, the Government must use other instruments to make sure that the Kenyan consumers are not paying exorbitantly for their daily meal.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, if you look at the whole Kenyan infrastructure in terms of the economy, you will find that we are net importers of food. We call ourselves an agricultural economy but the irony is that we are net importers of food. Another irony is that economies that are industrial and have robust manufacturing sectors have a problem of overfeeding their people. It is a paradox that countries that assume the role of being agrarian can barely feed themselves. I am just trying to bring the point that we must cut down our imports. When we have increased demand in our country, instead of being filled by local production both in agriculture and manufacturing, we import to fill the gap. Therefore, we remain a country which is agrarian in production but a fourth industrial, when it comes to consumption. We consume high technology items but on the other side of production we are very banal and basic.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, I support the Motion.

Member for Samburu East followed by the Member for Sotik.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I also want to support this Sessional Paper No. 2 of 2021 on the National Agricultural Policy. Just as my fellow Members have said, agriculture is very important in our country. When we were in school, we were told that agriculture is divided into two: crop production and livestock. It is not right when we take agriculture to mean crops only. We also need livestock production to be taken care of.

Hon. Speaker, there are too many livestock products from dairy and beef farmers. It is important to include all of them so that the entire country can move forward together. A very big number of people in this country entirely depend on livestock production. Too many policies have been developed concerning coffee and tea sectors but it is equally important to include livestock farmers. This policy will help our farmers get the support they need in this country. So, it important to consider livestock production.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I support.

The Member for Sotik followed by the Member for Igembe Central.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, I rise to support this policy. I want to start by saying that I am a son of a peasant farmer from Sotik and I know the value of agriculture. I thank the Mover of this Motion because for the first time this House is addressing agriculture as a specific subject.

For a long time, agriculture has had many challenges most of them manmade and others technical. I want to specifically speak on the issue of dairy farming. I went to school and my father who was a peasant farmer paid my fees. Dairy farming in the South Rift area has a lot of challenges. The cost of a litre of milk in Sotik is only Ksh30. It is a big irony to buy a litre at Ksh30 from a farmer and then sell half a litre at Ksh60. So, we must address the issue of pricing. Why should a farmer in Sotik be paid Ksh30 for a litre while someone else in Sotik Town buys half a litre packet of milk at Ksh60? This is a serious issue.

I also want the Government to look into the issue of extension officers. When we were growing up, we used to see extension officers coming to our farms to advise farmers on what to do to increase productivity. The Government should address the issue of extension officers so that farmers can get the latest technology and innovations to increase production. Agriculture is the major source of employment and if it is improved it will employ many people. It is also a source of food security. Therefore, I support this Motion because it will address many issues in this country.

I ask the Government to assist in research. In the lower side of Sotik Constituency, we have maize disease which has affected our economy for the last 15 years. There was Covid-19 in the world, and research was done and vaccines were developed. Yet, the maize issue has never been addressed. I support this Motion and ask that we look at the issue of milk coolers so that farmers can take their milk to the market in the morning and evening. We have a problem in that milk is transported from Sotik to other parts of the country. We ask investors who want to invest in Sotik to come and buy the milk, process and add value to it so our people can benefit from employment.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I support the Motion.

Let us have the Member for Igembe Central followed by the Member for Funyula.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker for giving me this opportunity to address this Sessional Paper No.2 of 2021 on the National Agricultural Policy.

Many Members who spoke earlier have said agriculture is the backbone of this country and it contributes a very big percentage to our GDP. It is a sector that should be supported and promoted to the highest level. The main objective of this policy is to increase production at a low cost. Agriculture is an investment like any other and whoever ventures into it has intentions of benefitting and gaining profits.

Now that the Government has taken the initiative of promoting this industry it should consider factors that bring this industry down. This is because we cannot expect good pay from agriculture if we only depend on rain-fed farming. This industry will only be meaningful if we adopt irrigation farming. This way we will have enough produce in our farms. We cannot irrigate unless we have enough water. If you move round, you will find many water catchment areas which were sources of agricultural water have been encroached and grabbed. The amount of water available for agriculture is reducing. This is a challenge to the Government to ensure water

catchment areas are protected so that we have enough water for irrigation and produce enough food in our farms.

We also have a challenge with our infrastructure. For example, I represent Igembe Central where we have thousands of acres of arable land but taking the farm produce to the market is a challenge. This is because there are no roads in the rural areas where the farms are. There is one major road known as Kore Road and the area where it leads to can feed the whole of Meru County and lower Eastern Region if there are other roads to the farms. This is a major challenge. I believe if infrastructure in that area is dealt with, production will go up and farmers will be encouraged. The Government has a responsibility of ensuring that our farmers are rewarded for their work.

We also have a problem with marketing. There are many growers of the miraa cash crop in the Igembe Central area that I represent. It is planted by over 98 per cent of the people who live in that area. That market has been a challenge for a while. There are countries that view this product as a serious cash crop. If you go to a place like Ethiopia, you will find that their Government generates more than 30 per cent of their GDP through miraa farming and selling. However, our Government does not take it seriously. We recently had a market in Djibouti where we supplied miraa for about three days. It was previously controlled by Ethiopians who immediately sent their Trade Minister to Djibouti to make sure that our supply was cancelled. Therefore, you realise that there are countries that take that crop seriously and contribute to their countries’ gain. When we used to supply miraa to Europe, Kenya Airways used to thrive through the funds that were moderated by Mirugi.

You have run out of time. Let us have the Member for Funyula followed by the Member for Runyenjes.

Thank you, Hon. Speaker, for this opportunity to contribute to the National Agricultural Policy 2021 whose theme is “Food: Our Health, Wealth and Security”.

We have a history of policies that address various thematic areas in this country. We are quite often obliged to undertake a review and develop a new policy in line with the changing environment. I just pray and hope that this is not a debate in vain. There seems to be a tendency of the current regime reversing all the policies, activities and actions initiated by the past regime. I just hope that we will not waste time discussing today yet, tomorrow, all that is contained in this booklet is trashed and said to belong to dynasties that do not understand the issues at hand.

For the very first time, the Policy expands the definition of the agricultural sector. Many times when you talk about the agricultural sector, what comes to the minds of many people is subsistence or commercial farming. That has been the idea. However, expansion of the agricultural sector to include crop, livestock and fisheries subsectors amalgamates a wide spectrum to enable focused attention. That will allow many areas that practise different forms of economic activities related to land, water and the environment to be put under one purview so that they can be dealt with comprehensively and effectively.

The key objective or mission of the Policy is to facilitate the transformation of agriculture in Kenya from subsistence production to viable commercial enterprises. Truth be told, we are not truly farmers. We are survivors who plant food for our own consumption, which is hardly enough. In a country where about 80 per cent of the landmass is made up of Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (ASALs) with erratic or no rainfall at all, it amounts to what we used to call in the movies “Mission Impossible”, as the Policy also mentions. However, it is always better to aim high and land as low as you can, but at least you aimed high.

Unless we move away from subsistence production in this country, we will not solve the key objectives of this Policy to provide the core goals of transforming crop, livestock and fisheries production into commercially oriented enterprises that ensure sustainable food and nutrition security. We wait to see what the Government will do. We also wait to hear what the Government will say. We wait to see how many resources the Government will invest in the agricultural sector to meet the mission that they have set for themselves.

The Policy enumerates challenges that have beset the agricultural sector, probably since Independence and pre-colonial days. They are very many, but I would just like to pick two that stand out. First, is the issue of low youth participation in agricultural development. Statistics do not lie. If you look at the figures, you will find that 90 per cent of those involved in agriculture are older people who might probably not be amenable to technology and new ideas. Probably, the overarching goal of this Policy should be to find ways of involving the youth in the agricultural sector. To do so, you need to ensure that it is the highest-paying sector that adopts modern information, communication and technology.

In my Constituency, we have started a conversation called Kilimo Biashara to ensure that it is not just about subsistence cultivation where there is hardly enough to sell to the commercial market, but to also find ways and means of ensuring that we commercialise agriculture so that we attract as many people as possible, minimise rural-urban migration and increase per capita income.

With those few remarks, I support the Policy. I hope that they implement it well.

Let us have the Member for Runyenjes followed by the Member for Mosop.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker, for the opportunity to contribute to Sessional Paper No.2 of 2021 on the National Agricultural Policy.

Agriculture is the next big thing in our country today. The next millionaires will come from the agricultural sector. However, it is very ironic that people who farm coffee or tea do not get what they should be getting because we have many cartels in the coffee and tea sectors. Those who farm are left without money while those who do brokerage, marketing and consumption end up getting all the money that would otherwise go to the farmers. That is something that the Government of Kenya needs to look into because it is demotivating for farmers to do a lot of work and get so little yet, they are the ones who should get most of the benefits that come with farming.

Currently, the tea industry does not pay as it used to in the past. With the current rate of inflation, returns from tea farming cannot even be equated to what we used to receive 10 years ago. The cost of living is very high yet, tea does not pay as much as it should be paying. There is need for the Government to intervene so that we ensure that our farmers do not work in vain. It is demotivating and demoralising for people to wake up in the cold and work all day yet, they get very little from it.

The Policy talks about the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) which means that we will have many opportunities that go beyond our country. However, we will not get there if we continue relying on rain-fed agriculture. Like one Member said, we are used to doing subsistence farming when we should move to commercial farming. That cannot be done if we do not get involved in irrigation farming. I confirm to you that our people have very good lands and soils to cultivate on. However, rains have become very unpredictable because of climate change. If the Government of Kenya invests in irrigation farming, we will have a lot of food in this country and agriculture will be a well-paying career for most people.

About 80 per cent of people in our rural areas depend on agriculture. The reason as to why young people are not involved in agriculture today is because they have seen that their parents do

not get anything out of it. If we are to get the young people to do agriculture, we must make them earn income from it. I am sure that once that is done, most of the young people will be involved in it and create employment for themselves hence, enhancing food security.

The Policy also addresses the issue of inter-county agricultural businesses. In my Constituency, there is a crop called muguka and it generates a lot of income for our people. Go to a County like Mombasa and you will hear that a lorry of muguka is being charged Ksh80,000 per entry. Eighty thousand shillings per lorry is a huge amount that the ordinary farmer cannot afford. I believe that the National Agricultural Policy will address such issues so that our people can embrace agriculture going forward.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker.

Next is the Hon. Member for Mosop followed by the Member for Kiambaa.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker for this opportunity that you have given me to support this Policy on transforming crop, livestock and fisheries production in our country.

As many Members have supported this Policy, I stand here as a testimony and knowing that since I was a child, we as a family have depended on agriculture. As we bring in this Motion, it is crucial because most of the citizens of this country depend on agriculture; either crop, livestock or fisheries. So, it really needs a lot of attention as a nation. We have shifted from putting a lot of effort to leaving agriculture to only farmers. One of the things that we need to do as a nation is to invest in agriculture especially, in crops.

Most of the seeds that we have, have issues. Most farmers have moved from farming to selling their land for other things because they do not get any support. Some time back we used to have the Agricultural Finance Corporation (AFC) which used to provide finances to the farmers so that they can do commercial farming but that Corporation has really gone down.

Two, most of the farmers have been discouraged because of lack of market. Most of them would go into production but once they harvest their crops, they lack market for them.

Three, is the issue infrastructure. The big problem most of the counties have is that they have produce, but moving them from the farm to the market is a problem; hence, making the farmers get really frustrated. For the last few weeks, we have been discussing the issue of maize. Most farmers moved away from farming maize to other cash crops because the price of maize went down, and continues to go down. We have shortage of maize in the country because the farmers shifted from farming maize. As such, we now depend on importation of maize from other countries. If as a nation we had invested a lot of our resources in ensuring that the farmers get good prices, given them good seeds and good support, there would be no time that we would have gone out to look for maize from other countries at very high price.

As a nation, we really need to sit down and re-think. Most of the farms now have been subdivided into small farms. It is not even viable to do commercial farming. As such, we need to re-think as a nation on how to move people from their farms to urban areas so that we can free most of the land. Once we do it, we will be able to do some commercial farming. People are now used to two, three or five acres and with it, you cannot be able to produce enough. But if we move those citizens to urban areas and figure a way to sustain them, free the land and leave a few individuals to do commercial farming, we will have enough produce. Because of climate change which continues to be a big problem, we need to do irrigation. Nations like Egypt and Israel have been able to do a lot of production because they do drip and all sorts of irrigation. They do a good job in feeding their citizens. There is no time that you will hear these nations running out of money

or food to feed their citizens. They have devised methods and ways to do some serious commercial farming that can help and support their farmers.

As such, I support this Policy. We need to re-look into our Policy and ways on how to support our farmers so that we can move away from subsistence to commercial farming. Thank you for this opportunity.

I support the Policy.

Member for Kiambaa followed by the Member for Kesses.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker for giving me another opportunity to contribute on the matter of agriculture.

I come from a county which was known to be the basket of food for the people of Nairobi. Everybody who lived in Nairobi used to get food from our County, Kiambu, and particularly, Kiambaa Constituency.

Currently, the status of agriculture in our county and probably, in my Constituency is not good. At the end of the day, we have been able to divide and sub-divide the agricultural land that was meant to produce food for the people in the constituency and the county. There has been an issue; people have been trying to sub-divide land because probably whatever they are producing is not beneficial to their income, or it does not tally with whatever they are putting into their farming. They are not able to survive with the harvest they have been getting from their farms.

We are known, and we must support the Motion even if will mean mapping out areas that are meant to produce food for our people. As we speak now, I think we are in danger.

When we were growing up, we used to pluck coffee beans in big farms within the constituency and the county. That is what we were depending on. The farmers were paid something that could benefit them and help workers in their farms. The current status is that it is no longer attainable. That is why they are sub-dividing land and building flats and houses so that they can support their families.

We need to come up with this policy to support minimum guarantee returns so that even the farmers doing zero grazing in a 100 by 100 feet acreage are able to produce something they can be able to feed their families, sell to their neighbours, extend to other counties and internationally.

We must support minimum guarantee returns. When you are grazing that cow or planting the seeds, what is your expectations, or that of the Government to support the person with a small farm, producing small and is able to market the small produce? They harvest the produce, are able to market and sell them out there.

We must support this Policy, ensure that we support the small-scale farmers, map out the areas and pass some policies. That way, areas that are meant for agriculture are not sub-divided, sold or house constructed to make profit out of it. We must map out and support areas that are meant for agriculture.

Irrigation is something that we need to think about as a nation because we can no longer rely on the rains. We must also think of a way of producing more, how to support our farmers and agriculture using irrigation? We have Kiambaa Dam that we have been fighting for. I am happy because in the next few years, we will have Kiambaa Dam to support our local farmers, so that they can produce food that will be beneficial to their families and even to the entire nation. I, therefore, support the Motion.

Dairy farming is key. We must support our farmers, even if we are doing zero grazing within our constituencies. Let the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries harness all these

thoughts so that we can come up with one policy and a Bill to support agriculture since it is the backbone of our economy.

I support the Motion.

Member for Kesses.

Thank you very much, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I rise at this late evening hour to support a very crucial Motion on the development of an Agricultural Policy. I am grateful that I am coming into leadership at a time when Kenya is rising again. This Policy is long overdue because Kenya is at a point that it needs to be defined well. The position of Kenya should be known. Other countries like Japan are known for production of Toyota cars. Germany is known for production of Mercedes Benz. Ford is known to come from America. Israel is known to be doing well in agriculture especially on matters of fruit production. What is Kenya known for?

As we saw the other day when the statistics of the population were released, Kenya has a population of 50 million. That tells us that there are 50 million mouths to be fed. How are we going to match this need with an economic opportunity for Kenyans? Moreover, what are we advantaged in, comparative to other regional countries? I am in support of this Motion. That the Motion should come into force and give a clear direction of where we are and where we should be. That it is going to recollect our minds and bring us back to the long gone saying that stated, “kilimo ni uti wa mgongo wa uchumi wa chi ya Kenya”. That is where we need to go back to.

The other day we were discussing the issue of land fragmentation. This is being intensified by the fact that agriculture has lost meaning because it is not paying back the farmers what they ought to be paid. The cost of investment does not equal the return on investment. Therefore, there is serious departure from farming to other sectors like real estate. This poses a challenge to agriculture because the hope of a land owner and the alternative of farming is construction of real estate. In the long run, real estate will never answer the first question of our livelihood, that is, food security. How are we going to implement agriculture as an economic activity to create employment and bring out industrialisation?

This policy should guide and inform future decisions of the Government. I know right now county governments are working on the County Integrated Development Plans and the national Government is working on the Budget Policy Statements and Medium-Term Economic Plans. All these will help as towards achieving Vision 2030 goals which will be here in a few years and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) , that our African region and the whole world is focusing on. I am happy that we are here today discussing the policy that is going to position us as a country. In this case, we need to look at this policy and expand it well to define the responsibility of all the actors in the sector.

When we talk about agriculture, as my colleague has put it, we are looking at farming. We are looking at the middle processes that will be in place, such as trading, conversion and industrialisation up to the sector that deals with releasing food to the market, until it reaches the mouths of human beings. I support this Motion and call upon this policy to give and define responsibilities to all the actors that are the county governments, national government and research centres. The challenge farmers are going through now is getting quality seeds. There is no proper research to give us quality seeds that are disease resistant and that give maximum yields. Even the seed from our animal husbandry, the Artificial Insemination (AI) ensure maximum production compared to the feeds that our animals are being given.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, I support this Motion and call upon the policy implementors to make sure that it does not stop at this House. We need to take this seriously, focus on our resource

allocation, our resource planning and put more energy on agriculture. This will support our economy. It will create employment and bring up our vulnerable youths in this day and era. They will go back to agriculture and earn their living, create employment and maximise our food security and create economic transformation to this country.

Thank you very much.

The Member for Roysambu, Hon. Mwafrika

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker for the opportunity. I rise to support this policy. The Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries used to support farmers in the 1970s and 1980s. It was wonderful. The Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries failed the day they withdrew the agricultural officers who used to advise farmers on how to conduct farming. If we can remember, we used to have agricultural officers who used to move round engaging farmers, advising them and telling them which is the best crop for which area. Today, farmers lack that support and advise. Every farmer today undertakes his or her own ways of farming without that knowledge. When it comes to livestock, we used to have cattle dips. Today, we do not have them. If we are to implement this policy successfully, we must have highly qualified agricultural officers in this country. We rarely see them out there to engage farmers and advise them on the best farming techniques.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, if we are to succeed in the implementation of this good policy, I would say that all the agricultural officers, should come out of their offices, quit the business of reading newspapers in their offices and go out there to advise farmers on how to go about farming. Today, if you go out there and ask a farmer which is the best fertiliser to apply during maize planting, one will tell you it is the 2020 type of fertiliser. If you ask another one, he will tell you

The Member for Kitui Rural, Hon. David Mboni.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker for giving me this chance to contribute to this Motion. The importance of the agricultural sector cannot be understated. It is understated because agriculture sector contributes 25 per cent of our GDP. If you add forests, it goes to almost 30 per cent of the GDP. It employs 80 per cent of total employees of this country. Employed people add income and reduce poverty, which is very rampant among our communities. This sector also brings in foreign exchange. Tea is the highest foreign exchange earner in the country. It also provides inputs to our agricultural farms and factories. Most of our industries use agricultural inputs. Hon. Temporary Speaker, since 1955, there have been different policies, plans and strategies to develop agriculture in this country. Agriculture also provides us food. Agriculture sector continues to face many challenges and this Policy tries to address them. Some of the challenges are erratic rainfall, especially in ASAL counties where, the Hon. Temporary Speaker

and I come from. There is also the challenge of reduction of agricultural land because of the subdivisions. As the previous speaker said, within urban areas, most of the agricultural land have been subdivided and used for putting up storey buildings. Agriculture also faces low and gradual production because of the kind of inputs we use. Most times we get very poor seeds. The sector also faces poor marketing and lack of value addition. The sector further faces poor governance in farmers’ organisation and cooperatives, and this Policy will address that. I remember long time ago we used to have extension officers. It is unfortunate that part of this sector has been given to the counties. Long time ago, we used to have agricultural extension officers who used to advise our farmers on the kind of crops to be planted and the seeds to use. If you go to the rural areas, these services are no longer there. I am a farmer, but I rarely see any extension officer come to advise me on what to plant. If you call them, you have to pay them. So, some of these services need to be brought in. I like what the Government is trying to do - subsiding production. If you subside production, you create employment; if you subsidise at a consumption level, you reduce employment in this country. Some of these subsidies - like what we are seeing now, the fertiliser prices going down - only go to places where tea, coffee, sugar and maize are grown. I was just wondering when farmers from ASALs, like you and I are going to get subsidies. Drought has brought a lot of mystery to livestock farmers in this country. People have lost their cows and lost their livelihood but the Government is not coming to their aid. I do not know a policy where the Government….

I add you three minutes. Proceed.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, thank you. Some of these subsidies should also be extended to the farmers in the ASALs. Many farmers have lost a lot of their livestock, but I do not see any Government effort to cushion them. Long time ago the Government used to buy cows during the drought period, kept the money for the farmers and the farmers restocked when it rained. This Policy should be wholesome and address issues of livestock and fishing so that every Kenyan feel catered for. Today, I was listening to somebody from South Africa. He was saying that Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO) seeds cannot be replanted. If you plant GMO seeds, you cannot replant them. He was saying that the companies that produce the GMO seeds also become cartels. They make sure that they colonise you and make sure that you buy seeds from them every time at whatever price. Hon. Temporary Speaker, with those few remarks I support this Policy. Thank you very much.

I call upon the Mover to reply.

Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. As I reply to this very important debate that has taken place on this Policy Paper, I wish to thank all the Members for their remarks which will go a long way in enriching the implementation of the Agricultural Policy Sessional Paper No. 2 of 2021. From the Members’ contributions, we have realised that, as a country, we have lost a lot in terms of investing in agriculture. Many of our farmers have lost hope but through this Policy the hope of our people will be revived. We have also realised that for sure agriculture is the backbone of our economy. This Policy needs to be implemented as soon as possible. We also need to give it a lot of attention. These are some of the things that Members have highlighted in their contributions. Once implemented, Kenya will have adequate income and that will have direct input

on our GDP, which will be improved a lot. We will also provide sufficient food at a very reasonable price meaning that Kenyans will afford buying food to sustain their families. We have also realised that by doing this, we will take care of the unemployed people, especially the youth. We will create many job opportunities and people will earn a living. Another important thing that we have noted from the Members sharing is that, there is need for proper coordination between the national and county governments. As of now, agriculture is devolved, but a lot needs to be done. Proper coordination between the two governments is required. Farmers or agricultural practices have not received a lot of support from the Government for several years now. Members have said that we need to invest in that area so that farmers can farm. We also need to give attention to the small-scale farmers or growers and the bottom-up idea.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, a country or any government that cannot feed its citizens is not free. If we pass this Policy, we will reduce poverty, as I have already said. We will have a healthy society. There is need for us to cut the importation of many things, especially food. By doing this, we will take care of that. As we give attention to crop production, Members feel that equal attention should be given to livestock production and fishing.

There is need for us, as a country, to make some deliberate moves, so that we invest in irrigation. Because of climate change, we cannot depend on rain anymore. So, there is need for our country to invest in irrigation farming that will improve our food production.

Hon. Temporary Speaker, with those few remarks, I beg to reply and request that pursuant to Standing Order 53(3), you defer putting of the Question to the following day. I thank you.

Order, Hon. Members! Hon. Mover of the Motion, I direct that this matter be put on the Order Paper for putting of the Question tomorrow, 1st December 2022.

Hon. Members, the time being 6.12